ISLAMABAD: A British-Pakistani Sufi Opera singer, Saira Peter, announced in a video message circulated on Saturday she received a letter of appreciation from Buckingham Palace for recording the British national anthem, “God Save the King,” following the coronation of King Charles III.
The British king’s coronation took place last May at Westminster Abbey in London. The event brought leaders and high-profile personalities from around the world and marked his official accession to the throne after the passing of Queen Elizabeth II in September 2022.
Upon receiving the recording, performed in the soprano vocal range, the highest of the female voice types in classical singing, the king sent Peter a letter conveying his good wishes and sincere thanks for her public services.
She also received a signed photo card from him and Queen Camilla.
“I want to share with all my followers how excited I am to receive a letter and card of appreciation and gratitude from His Majesty King Charles the Third,” Peter said in the video, where she mentioned she was Pakistan’s first opera singer. “This arrived in response to my civic service of recording the British national anthem, ‘God Save the King.’”
“Being British-Pakistani, I feel so privileged to contribute my skill and voice to the British government’s public events and citizenship ceremonies,” she added.
Peter informed the British national anthem was recorded at the request of UK Government offices at Hastings Town Hall in East Sussex. The recording is now used across her adopted country for official government events.
Previously, she recorded “God Save the Queen” in 2018, making her the first Asian and the only Pakistani officially invited to undertake the task. Peter also received acknowledgment and gratitude from the late queen.
Born in Karachi, the opera singer told Arab News during her visit to Pakistan last year she used to sing in church choirs and began her Western classical journey, learning from Paul Knight, a disciple of Benjamin Britten, in London in the early 2000s after her family moved there.
Peter’s father, Zafar Francis, pioneered the Noor Jehan Arts Center in London, which was opened by British superstar Sir Cliff Richard in 1998.
She is the director of the performing arts center and teaches both Western and Pakistani classical music there.
She said her work in Britain was projecting “a positive image of Pakistan.”
British-Pakistani opera singer receives royal honor for recording national anthem post-coronation
https://arab.news/nnvzx
British-Pakistani opera singer receives royal honor for recording national anthem post-coronation
- Saira Peter says she is privileged to contribute her voice to British government’s public events, citizenship ceremonies
- She also recorded ‘God Save the Queen’ in 2018 and received acknowledgement and gratitude of Queen Elizabeth II
Tunisian filmmaker wins $1 million AI Film Award
DUBAI: The $1 million AI Film Award was given to Tunisian filmmaker Zoubeir Jlassi for his film “Lily” during the fourth edition of the 1 Billion Followers Summit in Dubai.
The prize was awarded by Sheikha Latifa bint Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, chairperson of the Dubai Culture and Arts Authority.
The award, organized by the summit in partnership with Google Gemini, was presented as part of the gathering that focuses on the content creation economy. The event, that ran from Jan. 9–11, brought together more than 15,000 content creators and influencers, alongside over 580 speakers and 150 CEOs under the theme “Content for Good.”
The AI Film Award received 3,500 film submissions. Entries underwent technical evaluation with Google Gemini to ensure at least 70 percent of the production used generative AI tools.
Following jury selection and public voting, “Lily” emerged as the winner from a final group of five nominees, which included “Portrait No. 72,” “Cats Like Warmth,” “HEAL,” and “The Translator.”
